Staff Correspondent
Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali apprised the Cabinet on Monday that United States  Secretary of State John Kerry appreciated the role of law enforcement agencies of Bangladesh in countering terrorism in the country during his visit to the USA on February 17-19.
The Minister made the statement while informing the Cabinet meeting held on Monday at Secretariat about his visit to the USA. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina chaired the meeting.
The Foreign Minister met the US Secretary of State during his visit and discussed about the current situation of Bangladesh.
After the meeting, Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan at a briefing said that Mahmood Ali, during his US visit, informed Kerry at a meeting that terrorist activities in the name of political programmes in Bangladesh have come down due to coordinated efforts by the law enforcement agencies. "John Kerry said that the role and activities of our law enforcement agencies deserve praise for tackling the terrorism," Bhuiyan said quoting the US Secretary.
He said the US informed the foreign minister that the country is always concerned about terrorism and does not support terrorist activities in the name of politics. The country has assured Bangladesh to provide assistance to combat terrorism.
Both Kerry and Ali have agreed that there is no place of terrorism and extremism in democracy. Kerry also told him that US does not support terrorism as part of its political strategy, added the Cabinet Secretary.
He also said that the US secretary of the state also assured Ali of providing his government's assistance in handing over the convicted killer of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to Bangladesh.
The minister also informed the cabinet that US President Barak Obama himself wants Kerry to visit Bangladesh immediately, Bhuiyan said, adding that the cabinet thinks Ali's US visit was successful.